Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. CAKE scored 40.4, YUMC scored 77.1 — YUMC leads.
Compare another set
CAKE
The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated
Restaurants · Quality-Growth
40.4
$108.45 · $5.4B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
36.7
YUMC leads
YUMC
Yum China Holdings, Inc.
Restaurants · Quality-Growth
77.1
$42.92 · $14.5B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
CheapestYUMC15.3x
Fastest growthYUMC+8.8%
Strongest balance sheetYUMC0.38
Highest qualityYUMC85 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueYUMC-7%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
Growth against the P/E multiple. Up and to the right is cheaper and faster — the quality-growth idea in one picture. Points beyond the axis are pinned to the edge and marked off-scale rather than allowed to compress everything else.
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
CAKE
stronger →← stronger
YUMC
66
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
85
64
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
73
16
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
74
YUMC is stronger on 3 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
CAKE
YUMC
$205mC
FCF
$940mC+
+4.7%C+
Rev
+8.8%B
4.01D
D/E
0.38A-
29.4xC
P/E
15.3xB+
1.83C+
PEG
0.93B+
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
CAKE
YUMC
57% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
7% below
~19%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~5%/yr
-42%
1-yr DCF upside
+1%
-36%
5-yr DCF upside
+8%
-28%
10-yr DCF upside
+18%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
CAKE
Why this score
Raising its dividend
Durable high returns
YUMC
Why this score
Buying back stock
Raising its dividend
Durable high returns
The companies
CAKEThe Cheesecake Factory Incorporated
Restaurants · $108.45 · beta 1.04
Why now
Restaurants · market cap $5.4b. 8% off the 52-week high of $118.46. 14 sell-side analysts rate this a Hold with a mean 1-yr target of $97.43 (implying -10% upside).
Moat
ROE 39% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 115% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
D/E 4.01 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer. Net margin 4.6% is thin — operating leverage cuts both ways; input-cost inflation or pricing pressure hits the bottom line first.
YUMCYum China Holdings, Inc.
Restaurants · $42.92 · beta 0.06
Why now
Restaurants · market cap $14.5b. Down 26% from 52-week high of $58.39 — deep drawdown territory. PEG 0.93 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 20 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $61.91 (implying +44% upside).
Moat
ROE 18% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately. FCF converts 96% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash.
Risk
Value re-rating depends on a catalyst. Without one — analyst day, divestiture, margin recovery, capital return — the stock can stay cheap on these multiples for years.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where CAKE and YUMC diverge
On the headline score the gap is 36.7 points in favor of YUMC. The widest single difference is Value, where YUMC leads by 58.4 points.
ValueCAKE 15.6 · YUMC 74.0YUMC +58.4
QualityCAKE 66.3 · YUMC 84.8YUMC +18.5
GrowthCAKE 63.6 · YUMC 73.0YUMC +9.4
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is YUMC or CAKE the better stock?
YUMC scores higher: YUMC 77.1, CAKE 40.4 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do YUMC and CAKE differ most?
The widest gap is value, where YUMC leads by 58 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. YUMC leads all three pillars, so the gap is broad rather than a single-measure difference.
How are YUMC and CAKE scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.